Solutions in Human and Planetary Health: Mitigation, Adaptation and Resilience

Catalog description

This 10-week course provides the knowledge and skills to address climate change and its influence on the health of humans and the planet. It emphasizes student engagement and collaboration rather than lectures. Each week we will focus on the challenges and opportunities within a specific sector, including food and agriculture, energy, transportation, the built environment, the natural world, waste management, sustainable fashion, healthcare, and the arts, sports, and music industries. Examples: how AI is transforming healthcare but with a significant carbon footprint; sustainable fashion as part of the conscious consumerism movement; Bhutan as the first carbon negative nation; clean cooking and precision agriculture; heat warning systems; 'green' stadiums and music venues; use of low carbon anesthetic gases in the operating room, and heat-reflecting paint for highways and murals in cities. Specific innovations will be explored through case studies, discussions, and presentations by both experts and students. The course will include climate solutions from community, state, national and global perspectives. This class is offered for either two or three units. Student engagement will include 'show and tells' on favorite innovations, interviewing experts in the field, and discussions. For three unit credits, a project is required; it might be a proposal for field work/research, a policy draft, an op-ed or another creative product. We will celebrate our learnings with an innovation showcase on the final day of class, when projects will be presented.